64 flood insurance claims·$1.2M paid·4 federal flood & hurricane disasters
Share of the whole county outline, rivers and lakes included; parts FEMA hasn’t mapped count as zero.
Shaded areas are FEMA’s mapped flood hazard zones in and around Washington County, Utah. Zoomed out they are simplified; at street level the map switches to FEMA’s exact layer. Tap anywhere to check that spot, or search an address above.
Flash flooding from summer thunderstorms dominates the flood risk in Washington County, UT. Over the last 30 years, the NOAA Storm Events Database records 277 flash flood events resulting in 26 deaths, alongside 15 general flood events. Flash flooding is driven by atmospheric conditions such as weak northern stream shortwave troughs and cutoff lows that advect moisture into southern Utah, producing periods of sufficiently heavy rain over rain-sensitive areas. Recent examples include multiple flash flood events occurring in July 2025.
FEMA National Flood Insurance Program records indicate that claims have been filed across multiple zones, with the highest volume occurring in Zone X (33 claims averaging $20,924 with an average recorded water depth of 9 inches) and Zone A (19 claims averaging $80,343 with an average recorded water depth of 2 inches). Additional claims are recorded in Zone UNKNOWN (5 claims, average payout $1630, average 1 inch depth), Zone X_UNSHADED (5 claims, average payout $3883, average 1 inch depth), and Zone D (1 claim, payout $28,567, average 1 inch depth). Homeowners, real estate agents, and journalists monitoring properties in both designated high-risk areas like Zone A and moderate-to-low risk areas like Zone X should pay the closest attention to these distinct flood hazards and historical payout patterns.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
24% of Washington County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
25 NFIP claims with a recorded rated flood zone, 1978 to date. The zone is the one FEMA used to rate that policy, which may not match today’s map. Source: OpenFEMA NFIP claims.
In flood insurance claims here that reported a flood depth, the average was 5 inches.
Drawn to scale against an 80-inch door. Even a few inches soaks flooring, the bottom of the drywall and anything plugged in near the floor.
Average of the depths reported on claims (zero and implausible values left out); FEMA’s record doesn’t say exactly where each depth was measured. Source: OpenFEMA NFIP claims.
The worst year was 2007, with 7 claims and $141,911 paid.
Bar height is scaled by square root so ordinary years stay visible next to the worst one. NFIP claims by year of loss. Source: OpenFEMA.
30 NOAA storm reports from Washington County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Utah flood stories →
14 federal disaster declarations since 1977, 4 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Forsyth Fire | Jun 19, 2025 |
| Veyo West Fire | Jul 13, 2020 |
| Saddle Fire | Jun 21, 2016 |
| Severe Storm And Flooding | Sep 11, 2012 |
| Severe Winter Storm And Flooding | Dec 20, 2010 |
| Mill Flat Fire | Jul 25, 2009 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Blue Springs Fire | Jun 27, 2005 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
292 since 1996: 277 flash floods and 15 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Aug 27, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 26, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Sep 25, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 25, 2025 | — |
| Flood | Dec 24, 2025 | $30,000 |
| Flash Flood | Jul 18, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 17, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Oct 12, 2025 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Aug 27, 2025. Showers and thunderstorms brought flash flooding to portions of southern Utah.
Flash Flood · Aug 26, 2025. Showers and thunderstorms brought flash flooding to portions of southern Utah.
Flash Flood · Sep 25, 2025. A fairly weak cutoff low slowly ejected northward through the area over the course of several days. This feature in combination with sufficient moisture created an environment that supported several days of shower and thunderstorm development. Some of these storms produced locally heavy rainfall and flash flooding, as well as some strong wind gusts.
Flash Flood · Aug 25, 2025. Showers and thunderstorms brought flash flooding to portions of southern Utah.
National Weather Service narratives, lightly trimmed. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Every colour on the map above is a place on this drawing: where the ground sits relative to the flood FEMA plans for.
If a building in Washington County is in a high-risk zone (A or V) and its mortgage comes from a federally regulated or insured lender, or is federally backed, flood insurance is required.
Outside those zones it is optional, and often worth having: from 2014 to 2024 nearly one-third of NFIP claims came from outside the high-risk Special Flood Hazard Area. Since Risk Rating 2.0, NFIP premiums are set for each building, so the only reliable price is a quote: FloodSmart.gov or a local agent.